Constrained Capacities of DVB-S2 Constellations in Log-Normal Channels at Ka Band

Researchers have investigated the Shannon capacity of satellite links that have log-normal rain-fading channels in the Ka band (20-30 GHz). This paper uses information theoretic tools to expand on the previous work by computing the constrained capacity of log-normally distributed rain-fading channels in which practical constellations, such as those found in the DVB-S2 standard are used, as opposed to the Gaussian distribution assumed for the input signal in Shannon capacity calculations. Two types of rain environments are considered: a tropical environment and a fairly dry European environment. The results of this approach will help the satellite planner to determine realistic upper limits for the throughput of satellite links that use adaptive coded modulation to mitigate the effects of rain fades.